Bruised Not Broken: Shane Walsh x OC
by shaneswalsh
Summary: Disclaimer: This is my first fanfic ever. Like ever, ever. So I first off apologize if it's shit. Secondly, this fanfic will probably not go by the show's events. Characters will stay the same, but events will be altered and some changed completely and absolutely. I'll also probably add scenes that were cut from the show that I thought should've been canon.
1. Chapter 1

_I see the moon, the moon sees me_  
><em>shining through the leaves of the old oak tree<em>  
><em>Oh, let the light that shines on me<em>  
><em>shine on the one I love.<em>

She thought about the first day. The words of the lullaby filling her head in her mother's voice, though her mother was long gone now. The first day, not of the end of the world, but of the beginning of her's.

Her life before the end had been a string of endless nothings. Nothing to see except hate. Nothing to do but hide. She was small so she could crawl away when her father came home perfuming the air with whiskey and cigarettes. She was conditioned to that smell, so almost instantly she would hide. Hide physically, under the bed or in a closet, hide mentally in her thoughts. She never needed a ticket to get away in her head, she could go wherever she wanted just by closing her eyes. She'd travel to a million different places and done a million different things: rode an elephant in India, married a prince in Camelot, gone to the moon... all while hiding. Hiding from the screams, from the cries, from the slaps and the blows, and from the occasional visit from her father after her mother had gone to sleep.

That's where he found her on the first day. Hiding. She was hidden behind the counter of an abandonded gas station, for how long she couldn't say. A day? Two? All she knew was that they were dead, all of them. She knew. She hid her eyes from as much of it as she could, especially the ones that were feasting upon her mother, her sister. Her mother, whose golden hair reflected the Georgia sunrays and seemed to light up her face. Her sister, fierce as anything, with hair that matched their mother's but with a flame behind her eyes that her mother never had. She didn't have hair like her mother's or her sister's. Her hair was chestnut brown like her father's, her eyes brown as well. They had no flame behind them, and there was nothing extraordinary about her. She was a simple Southern girl who looked like her simple Southern father. Every day she wished for her mother's hair, for something to separate her from any likeness to her father, the monster that he was.

She remembered being startled by a sound that woke her up. Nothing loud, just the presence of another being close to her. She sat still behind the counter, the knife her sister, Vera, had given her shaking in her clenched fist. She had to decide if she was going to continue to hide or put up a fight like her sister... or give in like her mother. She didn't have to think about it for long because a man's voice made that decision for her.

"Jesus." His gun was up, but he lowered it at the sight of her. She could have only imagined how she looked, probably pathetic, as she sat curled up behind the counter shaking like a newborn pup. Her knife was still tight in her grasp, her knuckles white.

"I'm not gonna hurt you. You can put that knife down."

She finally looked up to put a face to the slow, Southern drawl that had addressed her. He was about thirty or so, with dark hair, dark brown eyes. His eyes. Most red blooded American women would probably be focused on his muscular build that showed through his tight t-shirt; his broad chest and his strong looking arms, but there was something about his eyes that caught her from the start.

"Shane?! What is it? Are you okay? Shane?!" A woman's voice came from behind him, shrill with worry.

"I'm fine. It's fine in here. Bring Carl in, grab what you can get." He answered the woman, but never took his eyes off her.

The woman came up next to him, "What are you-" Her eyes met the woman's whose expression changed almost at once. "Oh my god, look at you." She had concern in her voice, a maternal concern. "Come on outta there, it's okay." She extended her hand as a kind gesture, beckoning for her to come out from behind the counter. Under normal circumstances, she probably would have just stayed in hiding, but she needed someone. She needed people. She had no one and it had been a few days since she saw anyone. Well, anyone that was alive.

As she slowly picked herself up, the woman spoke again as she brushed the hair out of her face. "What's your name? How long have you been here? Are you alone?" She must've looked bewildered at all the questions, but tried to keep up just the same.

"Mia. I-I'm Mia." Her voice must've sounded broken, weak. Her voice must've reflected who she was then.

The man named Shane slowly took the knife from her hand. He must've seen the terror in her eyes at being stripped of her only physical defense, "It's okay, I just want to make sure you don't try to swipe at one of us, understand? We won't hurt you. It's just us. Well, and Carl."

It was only then that she noticed the boy behind the two strangers. His hair was brown, like the woman's, but not as dark as Shane's. He had blue eyes, they weren't like Shane's either. Carl gave a small, cautious wave and she reciprocated with the same.

"I'm Lori, this is Shane. How long have you been here?" The woman spoke to her carefully, as if she didn't know what to expect.

It took a moment for her to speak again. She was terrified, uncertain, hungry, drained. Weak. "I, um... I'm not sure. I-" Her sentence broke as she looked down. There were corpses everywhere, she knew that. None of the ones in the gas station market were abominations, but ones they had left. Ones they had eaten. The a small ray of sunlight shone through the room and reflected onto one of the corpses' golden hair.


	2. Chapter 2

_"I just don't think this is a good idea."_

_"We can't just leave her, Shane. That's not humane; it's not who we are."_

_"No, I know, but we don't know anything about her."_

_"Rick would have..."_

Mia McKay faintly remembered voices speaking as she awoke alone inside what seemed to be a tent. It was silent now, but the voices seemed to have been active when she was asleep. She remembered being in motion; in a vehicle. At this point she didn't know if she really heard them or if she was dreaming. What she knew now was certain: she was in an unfamiliar place and had nowhere to hide. She immediately began to panic, looking around frantically as the sweat that had accumulated in her sleep glistened off her skin. Instinctively, she grabbed for her knife only to find that it wasn't there. She felt vulberable, defenseless, confused. Her instincts were never physical confrontation, but aside from the knife providing a defense against abominations or whoever else, it also served as a safety blanket. Something given to her by her sister. A last physical memory.

As far as she could tell, nothing had harmed her. She gave herself a quick once over and aside from being filthy, sticky with sweat, and in dire need of a shower, she was okay. She glanced around the tent once more. It reminded her of nights her sister, Vera, used to bring her outside in the backyard. Sometimes the fighting between her parents got so bad that Vera planned spontaneous "camping" trips. "C'mon, Mia," she would say, "Let's go tell stories in the back. I set the tent up for us." Thinking about her sister hurt in every way possible, so she stopped. She needed her knife back. Without her knife Vera's death seemed all too real for her; as if her sister stopped protecting her, as if she was alone.

Hearing no sound but the cicadas outside, Mia slowly unzipped an opening big enough to peek through in the tent. She saw nothing, only trees and stars, the humble glow of embers out of the corner of her eye. If she had been kidnapped, she would have been bound, she thought, so she mustered up every ounce of bravery she could and emerged slowly from the tent.

"Well, well."

A familiar masculine voice overtook the soft chime of the cicadas and Mia whipped around, eyes wide. Shane. That was his name. The dark haired man rose from the fold out chair he was sitting in, setting aside the shotgun that had just been laying in his lap. The expression on his face was a mixture of concern and pleasant surprise. Mia was unsure of herself, of what to do, where to go. She hadn't trusted many men in her lifetime, her father made sure of that, and even though the man standing in front of her seemed like he didn't want to hurt her, she was still wary. Still cautious.

"Why don't you sit? Here, take this." He took a water bottle out of a backpack near a tent next to the one she had just been occupying. Mia was silent, but did as he said and took what he gave her. She hadn't realized how thirsty she had been, but it made sense. It was Georgia after all, in the middle of the summer, and she had been asleep for...

"How long was I asleep?" She asked the question softly after she had almost guzzled down the water bottle.

"Asleep? Girl, you were knocked out." He sat on a nearby log and laughed at his own comment. She couldn't tell if it was the glow of the embers or if it was because she had actually gotten some rest, but Mia noticed more detail about his face. His nose seemed to be broken, probably multiple times, and his face was dirty. He looked up at her and she instantly remembered his eyes. Round and a deep, dark brown, nothing like her brown eyes. His eyes were different. She could only imagine what she looked like at this point. She rubbed at her face in a feeble attempt to look presentable before he began to speak again.

"You've been out all day. We found you at a gas station, you don' remember? You fainted, I guess, and just stayed asleep. We were worried about you but you showed some sign of life in between there so I guess you were just exhausted." He got up from his log, over to the backpack again, and took out something. We? He said "we" and she instantly remembered he wasn't alone. He had a woman with him. Lauren? Lily? And a boy. She couldn't remember his name either, and she felt bad. These people had obviously done right by her, as much as she felt like she couldn't trust anyone. Shane came back with a can of beans and some beef jerky. "You should eat somethin'." He handed her the jerky and beans, cuisine she figured she'd have to get used to in the sudden end-of-the-entire-world-as-she-knew-it scenario they were placed in.

"Thank you." She ate the food she was given quickly, every so often looking up to see what Shane was doing. It was a habit at this point, always trying to be aware of who was around her. Always on the defense. There was no need to be though, not now. She saw that. As she ate her meager post apocalyptic meal, Shane didn't stare, he didn't make a move. All he did was look at the dull burning of the embers as he poked them with a stick absentmindedly. Once she finished her food, she broke the silence by speaking again.

"Your wife, she's here? In the other tent?" It was a sorry excuse for an ice breaker, but it's not like she knew much about him anyway. What else was she supposed to say? Shane's gaze shifted from the orange glow to her face. "Oh, Lori? No, I mean, yeah. She's with Carl in that tent." He held up his left hand. "Not married, though. Just... close friends, I guess." Mia's face flushed red with embarassment. She instantly felt rude for assuming something, but Shane didn't seem to be offended. In fact, he just seemed to be preoccupied. As if he was miles away in his head, somewhere else. Somewhere that wasn't riddled with the abominations, somewhere safer. Hidden. Shane seemed to finally bring himself back to the small clearing they were occupying. "Mia, right? You alone I'm guessing? I'm hoping anyway, cause if not we just separated you from whoever you were with." A soft smile, almost apologetic took over his face.

"Yeah, yes." Solemnly, she looked down at her boots. They were ragged, had some wear and tear to them, but still sturdy. Vera had an extra pair and knew Mia would need them. Vera. Her throat began to close a little at the thought of her sister, her mother. The thought that she was alone. She didn't notice the silent tears that began to fall, but Shane did. He took a rag from his pocket and crouhed in front of her, dabbing at her tear stained cheeks. "We talked about it, okay? Me and Lori? We don't know you from a hole in the wall, but if you want to stay, you can. We're goin' to Atlanta, first thing. They say there's a refugee camp there. You don' have to stay with us, that's up to you, but..." He handed her the rag he was holding so that she could use it as she needed to. He searched her face, making sure they made eye contact, something she was never in a million years comfortable with doing. She listened to what he said, could tell the weight of his words. Their eyes met briefly, Mia breaking the contact first, but just long enough to know he was serious.

"Now, I-I know you don't know me either, but I'm a police officer. I mean, I was. So I won't hurt you. Lori is just hellbent on makin' sure you're okay. She doesn't feel right leaving you, it doesn't sit right with her. My main objective here is keepin' her and Carl safe, that's all I want, but she doesn't want to leave you behind." He sat back down on his log, probably not wanting to make her uncomfortable with their proximity. She appreciated that. Human contact was not exactly comforting to her and she didn't even know this person. The more he spoke, however, the safer she felt with him. She wasn't ready to jump up and give him a hug, let him know her entire life story, ride off into the sunset with him, but she felt a kind of faint trust. As if he meant what he said, a sense of honesty.

Mia thought about his proposition, weighing the options. She needed people, she knew that. She wasn't tough like her sister, she hid. Hiding will only keep her alive for so long. This could be the best thing for her, but she was suspicious. He barely knew her, why was he offering to save her life? To let her into his... well apparently they weren't his family, but she could sense the strong desire to keep them safe. "Well, what do you think on that? Do you want me to stay?" She looked up at him quickly enough to catch his eye again and his face turned serious. "Like I said, I don't know you from a hole in the wall and my main objective is to keep them safe. But I also said I was a police officer, and I still want to help people. The way I see it, I could always use another set of eyes to keep watch." Mia realized it was kind of a yes-but-no answer, but it was good enough for her. She took note of how they both were dealing with their own trust issues. They were strangers, they didn't know each other. She had nothing to lose, but it seemed as though he was living for something. He had much more reservations than she did, even taking into consideration her desire to just keep on living.

Finally she spoke again, this time looking him straight in the eye without looking away. "Okay," she said, "Okay, I'll stay."


	3. Chapter 3

The end of the world is a complicated time and place. You take for granted a lot of things such as showers, telephones, fresh baked bread, wifi, The Rolling Stones. But when they started for Atlanta first thing the next morning just as Shane had said, Mia started taking for granted living people in general. That day was bad. They'd been stuck on the road, no way to get out of traffic, no way to continue on. It was a disaster, cars had been stuck in traffic all day. Chaos. People were camped out of their cars, mad with worry. Shane kept a sense of calm the whole time, a sense of order. Even if he hadn't told Mia he was a cop, she was sure she could have guessed it after his handle on the situation.

After a whole day of sitting stuck on the road, people got familiar with each other. They exchanged pleasantries through the panic, best they could. Lori tried to get to know Mia more as Carl found other children to play with, never far out of sight from anyone. Mia and Lori seemed to be forming a bond in silence and she felt safe with her, as safe as she could giving the circumstances. She wasn't that much older than Mia but her maternal instinct was a comfort. Perhaps it was the fact this woman wanted her around, wanted to genuinely help her. In a world where she had no one, this complete stranger wanted to take her in and help her. She respected that and appreciated it, so the least she could do was open up to her a little. She had a right to know things about her, especially if she was trusting Mia to be around her son.

"So what did you do?" Lori engaged in smalltalk, though it seemed as though they should be past that point, but then again what do you say to someone whose life you just saved during the end of the world?

"Sorry?" Mia replied, as she stood outside Shane's car with Lori. She hadn't really been paying attention to her or anyone in particular, so when her voice shifted focus it caught Mia off guard.

"You know, what'd you do? Do you... Did you have a job?" Lori's change from present to past tense irked Mia, but she understood. Nothing could be the way it was, at least not for a long while.

"I was a waitress. A good one, too." Lori smiled at her response, seeming immediately more comfortable with her. Mia reciprocated the smile back at the older woman. "I hated it, though. I hated it every day. The long hours I didn't mind, but it hurts your feet somethin' awful. Coffee burns too, those were the worst. Well, that and coming home smelling like old french fries. Strange, now I kind of miss smelling like old french fries." Their smiles faded at the tone of nostalgia in Mia's voice. The realization that now they were in a world that may never have another diner again.

The air grew cooler as night set in. Shane had spent all day trying to calm people, network, collect information to plan their next move. All of this while checking in with Lori and Carl, making sure they were safe, hydrated, fed. He barely spoke to Mia, but she wasn't offended. Lori and Carl were his to look out for, not her. It was like she was with them, but she wasn't with them.

"There's nothin'." She heard Shane say as she stood outside watching Carl play checkers with another little girl they had met. She looked up and saw that he had been trying to get a radio signal. He was speaking to Lori, but Mia didn't hide that she was listening. "The emergency broadcast signal stopped, that recording about the refugee center. It's all gone." His eyes left Lori's and for the first time since their last and only real conversation, it felt like he actually acknowledged Mia was there, though he stayed silent. He got out of the truck, and although his air of calm never wavered, she was sure she could sense his fear. You could be a cop for fifty years and no amount of training, boot camp, or fieldwork would ever prepare you for an apocalypse.

"I'm gonna go up the road and see what I can see." He began to walk away from them, Lori tagging close at his heels.

"I'm goin' with you." She looked at Mia hopefully, "Do you mind keepin' an eye on Carl? Shane and I are..." Mia nodded her head in response and Lori's face seemed grateful. "Thank you. We'll be right back."

"But I wanna go with you..." Carl pleaded to his mother. She couldn't blame him. If Mia still had a mother she would never want to ever leave her sight. If she still had anyone, she'd want them close at all times. She felt sorry for Carl, how cruel and unfair it must've been to have this happen in your childhood. He would never know a life but this.

Shane ruffled Carl's hair casually, "We'll be back before you know it. Alright, little man?" He looked back at Mia and nodded his head, "Thank you." He started up the road with Lori and she watched him until she couldn't find him anymore. His sincerity was not only comforting, but intense. The two words he left her with, "thank you", were said as if they held so much weight. As if watching Carl for the ten minutes, or however long they'd be gone, was the biggest favor she could do for him. Just keeping him safe.

"Your dad's nice." the young girl said to Carl as she made her move in their checker game. Her name was Sophia, she had learned. Her mother, Carol had been friendly with Mia and Lori throughout the day. As nice as she was, Mia tried to keep her distance from her because Carol had reminded her of her mother. Mostly because her husband, Ed reminded her of her father. The last thing she needed in the heightened stress of an apocalypse were more thoughts of her dead parents.

"Shane's not my dad. My dad's dead." Carl replied, as casually as if commenting on the weather. There it was, Mia thought. She knew in her gut Shane had not been Carl's father, they didn't look anything alike. Yet there was a bond there, a bond that doesn't grow overnight. Shane had been in Carl's life for a long time. She wondered what happened to Carl's father, who he was, how he...

Then she heard them. Explosions.

Her natural instinct was to grab Carl, hold him close to her. He barely knew her, but he didn't resist. He held her shirt tightly as they both looked up. Helicopters. Flashes of light. Muffled booms in the distance. Carl looked up at her, terror painting his freckled face.

"It's okay now, just get back in the truck." Mia surprised herself at how much she worked on instinct. She made sure Carl was in the back before following suit, locking the doors. Carl, who she noticed before had a pretty calm demeanor for a child living in the end of the world, slowly began to slip. His eyes welled with tears, his voice cracking, "I want my mom. I want Shane..." She held him close trying to shield him from hearing the booms from outside. "I know, it's okay. They'll be back soon."

Not five minutes later, Shane and Lori did just that, sprinting back to the truck. They both jumped in, Lori instantly reaching for her son. "Baby, baby, are you okay?" He pulled away from Mia towards his mother's reach, still crying. "W-What's going on? What's that noise?" His voice trembled and Shane backed his truck into the Honda in back of them without warning.

"Shane!" Lori gasped shrilly, "What are you doing?!" He ignored her question, ignored the curses the driver was giving, ignored the honking as he began to pull out of the traffic to turn around in the grass beside them. Mia quickly strapped her seatbelt on. Shane seemed to have a plan, but it was an unpredictable plan and wouldn't it be a funny way to go? In a car accident when there were dead people walking around? Shane's eyes seemed almost fanatical and fierce as he drove opposite the traffic on the side of the road. She looked out the window and she could see that Ed was following them. She hoped he just thought Shane was a survivalist and trusted his instinct, and there were no alterior motives to be had.

Shane drove. He drove fast, and he drove hard. He drove until they weren't in sight of traffic anymore. The car was silent after a while once Lori had stopped asking questions. Mia looked back and saw that not only was Ed's car following them, but more cars. An RV. People must've responded to Shane's air of authority, and she admired that.

After what felt like forever, Shane finally stopped. Mia had dozed off, though with his driving she was surprised she could. She supposed it was because his fervor to get his adopted family... and her... away from danger comforted her. She didn't know exactly what they had seen when they separtated from her and Carl, but she had a good idea and she didn't want to ask.

He got out of the truck, closed the door gently. As they were driving they had seen a few abominations along the way. Shane ran over a couple, others he just outran. "Stay in the car." He didn't seem to be talking to anyone in particular, so they all sat there. Silent. He went to the back, taking his shotgun out. The cars that had followed them stopped and were scattering around in the clearing. A few men in the cars followed Shane's lead and exited their vehicles with weapons in hand. She couldn't hear what was being said, but it looked like Shane was leading them. Giving them orders on where to search. Her presumption, she saw, had been right once she saw a few of them take out a couple of abominations. Carl had fallen asleep on Mia's shoulder while she and Lori just sat there staring at the men clearing the area quietly. There was nothing to say, so the silence wasn't uncomfortable. It just seemed necessary.

The sound of Shane opening the driver's seat door woke Carl. He jumped up, eyes still puffy from his crying before. "Alright, we're gonna set up camp. Stay close. Carl, c'mon, get up, bud." Carl assumed responsibilty right away as they all got out of the truck. Shane handed him what he felt he could carry; bags of clothes, supplies. Mia had nothing of her own. When they took her from the gas station, they left behind her bag of clothes, her things. There wasn't anything sentimental that she had left, but it still would've been nice to have at least a clean set of underwear. The only thing she wanted was her knife. Shane still had it and if she hadn't been uncomfortable asking for it before, she definitely was now with the state he was in.

They unpacked their belongings and set up their tents. They had two. One for Carl and Lori, one for Shane, though he hadn't slept in it since she'd been with them. He had kept watch the night before as she occupied his tent, and then spent the rest of the night in his truck.

"What?" Mia realized Shane had been addressing her as she came back from whatever thought she was lost in. Lori and Carl had already gotten in their tent and aside from the other people setting up their camps and chatting with each other around them, it felt like they were alone.

"Oh, sorry. Nothing. No, nothing." Mia's face was flushed, embarassed that she had began to zone out. "I, um... Sorry, this is probably stupid. It's just that I don't have anything else to wear? I mean, this is all I've got. It'd be nice to change. It's just..." Shane stared at her, almost expressionless as she continued, "I mean, I, also, where am I sleeping? I don't want to kick you out of your own tent. Again. I have no, you know, I don't have a tent. I'm sorry this is probably so trivial. We've got bigger things to worry about, I'm real sorry."

Shane, who had been grim, stoic, and serious for the majority of the day and certainly for the entirety of the night, surprised Mia by letting out a big laugh. "Darlin', that's the most I've heard you talk in the past two days." He was delirious, she thought. What kind of reaction was this? This was a man who had just seen some atrocity, something so awful he went into full survival mode, and he just burst out laughing over, what? An awkward sleeping arrangement? He sobered up from his outburst and rubbed his hand through his hair. "Go on, ask Lori for somethin' before she falls asleep. I'm sure she's got extra clothes. We'll take care of everything later. Tonight just take the tent again, go on."

Lori gladly gave her an extra set of clothes, apologizing that she hadn't thought of it before. Mia assured her it was fine, that there were bigger fish to fry, and headed back to Shane's tent. Before entering, she looked around to see where he was and found him talking to some of the other occupants of the clearing near his truck. She zipped up the tent before changing her clothes. A pale yellow t-shirt and plaid pajama shorts. She immediately felt better having the fresh fabric against her skin instead of the blood-stained ones she had on before. As she settled in the tent, what she supposed was the equivalent of a knock drew her attention.

"You decent?" Shane's voice came from the other side of the polyfiber tent.

"Yeah." She zipped back the tent so that he could enter, but he stayed in the opening, not looking to invade her space.

"Hey, so, I thought I should give you this." He took out something wrapped in a rag and held it out in his palms. "You looked after Carl today, you stayed with us. This is yours anyway, I got no place keepin' it." She unwrapped the rag and saw her knife. A lump in her throat formed. Her defense was back.

"Thank you." She looked up at him with gratitude, as if he had now done her the biggest favor in the world. He responded with a nod and a small, sideways smile, as if he understood. He knew the weight, though he didn't know the specifics. A silent understanding. She turned back toward the inside of the tent, and started to put away her knife when he spoke again.

"You look nice in yellow," he smiled at her again and before she could answer back, "'Night."

The end of the world was undoubtedly, a complicated time and place.


	4. Chapter 4

The sound of people woke Mia up the next morning. People talking, people laughing, people working, people moving. People living. It was nice, given the circumstances they were in. It was nice, still she felt a bit withdrawn. These were all the people who had followed Shane from the highway and she had no idea who they were. She barely knew who Shane and Lori were, although they seemed kind enough. She changed into her jeans and put her boots on, leaving on the shirt Lori had let her borrow. Her shirt was far too filthy and, according to Shane, she looked nice in yellow.

She took her knife before exiting the tent and sheathed it on her hip. Now that she had it back, she never wanted it to be far from reach. Scanning the campsite, it seemed as though Shane had picked a good spot, whether it was intentional or not. They were up in the mountains and it seemed clear enough to her. She wondered if he knew where he took them or if he just drove blindly until he found somewhere he felt was safe. Neither option would have surprised her. There were a good amount of people there who she didn't know, which was off putting to say the least. She looked for either of the people who took her in through the survivors. Carl and Sophia were nearby playing with two other children she didn't recognize. Shane was by his truck, talking to a few men she didn't recognize either. Mia thought to herself that you never feel more alone than when you're surrounded by people.

"Hey!"

"Fucking Christ." She swore under her breath as she jumped, startled by the cheerful man in front of her. He had to be around her age, possibly younger, in a baseball cap.

"Whoa, sorry. I didn't mean to scare you. I'm Glenn." He extended his hand out to her, waiting for reciprocation.

"I'm Mia. Sorry for cussin'." Her heartbeat slowed back to a normal pace and she shook his hand. He seemed harmless enough, but he had taken her by surprise. "You probably shouldn't sneak up on people like that, you know, with all the..."

"Oh, good point. Yeah, I should probably be more careful there... So, what's your story? Are you here with someone?" What probably seemed to him like an innocent enough question, hit Mia right in the gut. She didn't consider herself with anyone. She didn't really know Shane or Lori, but would she be considered _with_ them? It was confusing. Lori seemed like she wanted her there, like she wanted to help. Shane had reservations though, or at least it seemed like he did. But last night he seemed almost grateful that she looked after Carl and he gave her knife back, so maybe he was starting to get comfortable with her. Maybe he was starting to want her around...

"Yeah, I'm..." She looked back to where Shane had been standing before. Carl had just ran up to him, showing him something he had in his hands. Shane cut his conversation short to focus on what Carl was holding and Mia heard him laugh. That's when she knew she wasn't with anyone. What would have been a heartwarming exchange to anyone else, sent her heart into the pit of her stomach. No one loved her like that, not anymore. Carl wasn't his, but there was love there. There was no one to love her now. She looked back at Glenn and swallowed the lump that had formed in her throat. "No, I'm not with anyone."

"Sorry, that really sucks." He must've heard the pain in her voice and looked to where her focus just was. He changed the subject pretty quickly. "That's the guy that found this place. That caravan last night was kind of crazy. Tdog and I saw it going in the other direction on the highway and we just followed. Figured it was better than sitting around doing nothing at that point, especially with all the bombs being dropped on the city."

Mia's skin crawled at the mention of the explosions and what they really were. She knew, of course, but she didn't want to think about it. She didn't want to think about what Shane and Lori had probably seen from where they were.

"...but he seems okay to me." Glenn had been talking and she felt bad she hadn't been paying attention. She'd kind of been out of it lately, she hadn't meant to be rude. Thankfully, Glenn didn't seem to notice and he just kept going. "He must've just wanted to get his wife and kid out of there. That was crazy stuff last night, all those people... But he found a good place at least. We're high up so the geeks can't get us and there's water nearby."

"They're not married. They're just close. Did you say water?" She perked up at the mention of anything that could make her not feel like she hadn't showered in... Well she didn't really remember how long it had been, but it was long. A few days at least.

"Yeah, Shane found it this morning. There's a quarry lake down over there." He gestured vaguely to the left of him. "Anyway, I'm gonna go make my rounds, see who else I can bother." When he smiled at her, she couldn't help but smile back. He was sweet, she could tell. There was nothing to be afraid of with Glenn. "It was good to meet you!"

"Nice to meet you too, Glenn." With a slight wave and a lingering smile, he was gone from her presence as quickly as he had entered it.

Water. Bathing. Cleanliness. It was almost too good to be true, so she had to see it for herself. She started in the direction Glenn had motioned towards. She wasn't quite sure of where she was going, but she figured if she kept walking down far enough she'd hit water eventually. For the first time she wasn't worried about anything, even given the fact she was alone. She wasn't terribly skilled with it, but she had her knife if anything happened. At that moment it didn't concern her, though. Her only concern was getting to the water.

Once she found it, she had to touch it to make sure it was real. It looked like a painting; the blue of the water stark against the contrast of the greenery and the mountains, almost mimicking the cloudless sky overhead. It was perfect. This was the best thing to happen to her in days, maybe even longer than that. It was a simple pleasure, but the joy she felt was immense. She let the water wash over her arms and wrists. It was warmed slightly by the hot Georgia sun beating down upon it, and in that moment she almost forgot about her current situation.

She checked and checked again to make sure the coast was clear before undressing and slipping into the water. Her "bath" turned into a swim and soon she waded in the water for so long that the skin on her fingers began to prune. Time was of no significance anymore, she figured, since it was the end of the world and all. As long as they knew when the sun would rise and set, that's all anyone seemed to pay attention to nowadays. It was nowhere near sunset, still early afternoon she guessed, but she didn't want anyone to worry about where she was... if anyone would worry at all.

Mia wrang out her hair the best she could, mentally adding towels to a list of luxury items she had taken for granted before. There was still no one around, she had noticed as she got dressed. The silence was part comforting, part unnerving in a way. However long she had been out there, it was time to get back. The group had seemed busy when she left, and surely there was something she could help them out with. The camp was far enough so that she could enjoy her time of solitude at the quarry, but not so far that she felt she would get lost. On her way down to the water, she made sure to make a straight shot of it so that she would be able to find her way back. Her sister, Vera, would've been proud of that and that made her smile.

As she trekked on through the woods, she noticed a bush to her left ripe with dark berries. Her stomach rumbled a little, the sight of the berries reminding her that she hadn't eaten that day before going off on her own. She was sure that there was food at the camp, but the fruit in front of her was there. What was the harm in having some? If she could find a basket or something at camp, maybe she would ask Lori if she could take Carl to pick some and bring them back for everyone. It would take his mind off of things for a little while, and maybe they could have some bonding time. No sooner had she reached for one of the berries, did she hear a rustle immediately followed by a man's voice.

"I wouldn't eat that."


	5. Chapter 5

Mia's breath got caught somewhere between her chest and her throat at the sound of an unfamiliar voice. The berries that were once in her hand fell to the ground as she moved just her eyes to look at the man.

"That's Nightshade, don't you know nothin'? That shit'll kill you. Unless that's what you wanted..."

As he continued speaking she eased up slightly, allowing herself to fully face him. He wasn't muscular the way Shane was muscular, but lean. His hair was short and he wore a t-shirt with the sleeves cut off. Slung over his shoulder was a crossbow and Mia could see that he was equipped with a hunting knife as well. She didn't want to stare too long without answering him, so she gave a shaky response.

"No, that's not what I- Thank you. Thanks."

It seemed that the man, whose name she still didn't know, was not all that convinced by her answer at first. He began to size her up the same way she had done to him. She didn't know what it was, but something had apparently changed his mind and he replied with a small and silent nod.

"I'm Mia."

Almost animalistic, the man's ears perked up at something and his small eyes darted past her. He quickly put a finger to his lips, obviously a signal to Mia to shut the hell up, and crouched down readying his crossbow. She hadn't heard what he had apparently found so important and she tried her best to stay quiet and still as he carefully and silently slunk by her. When she turned and saw the deer not 50 feet away, it was already falling to the ground.

"Daryl."

"What?"

Mia was no stranger to hunting, after all she had grown up in rural Georgia. Her father took her and her sister out to watch him a couple of times, ignoring her mother's objections. She'd seen him kill before and it used to upset her, though she'd never let him know. Vera would always give her the 'don't cry in front of Daddy you don't want to make him mad' look, and she'd hold back the tears that wanted to form. One day he had a double kill; the mother first, and her confused fawn right after. She couldn't hold it that day, and he ended up getting mad, just like Vera predicted. That was the last time he took her out with him, though he would still bring home fresh kills for food or mounting if it was impressive enough. She was older now, not a child anymore, so she understood the need for hunting. It wasn't as traumatic as it would have been when she was 10. What took her aback this time was how skilled and fast this kill was. Her father would have been impressed by...

"Daryl."

Daryl. He walked by her, not looking for a response of any kind, and took his arrow out from the animal's neck. She watched him, thinking about what had happened, about to open her mouth to ask him how long he'd been hunting when another voice startled her worse than Daryl's had.

"You get that deer or what?"

The man who Mia assumed to be Daryl's older brother, looked at the deer and then at her. He surveyed her up and down as if she was the piece of meat instead of the dead animal Daryl began to try to heave over his shoulder.

"Well, well. You got quite the catch here. Picked yourself up two li'l does."

Mia knew he was not talking about the deer, but Daryl, who had not been paying attention to where his brother was focused, did not seem to pick up on that.

"Yeah, well are you gonna help me lift it or what?"

When Daryl looked up, he finally understood and gave a frustrated sigh. Mia shifted uncomfortably and touched her knife, not sure if she would have to use it or not, but just to make sure it was there. Merle's eyes followed her fingers touching her knife and he chuckled to himself.

"No need for that, Sugar. We're alright, aint we Daryl? Just passin' through is all... unless you got a camp?"

Mia knew the obvious intelligent response to his question would be to deny having a camp; she was timid but she wasn't an idiot. But then what? 'No, I don't come from a camp, you can just move along and let me sit back here alone in the woods.' She didn't know who these men were or what they were capable of. It's hard to predict the outcome of a situation when you're not sure what you're dealing with. She didn't have to worry about it for long however, because her silence spoke volumes to the older man.

"Oh, I think she does. I think this pretty li'l doe has a camp!"

He moved closer to her and she stepped back instinctively. To her surprise, however, all he did was extend his hand.

"Name's Merle and that's my baby brother, Daryl. I only bite if you want me to, sweetheart."

Mia's heart slowed down a bit and she felt a little ashamed that she had judged them both so harshly, but there was still something uncomfortable about this whole encounter. Was it just the unknown? Was it the circumstances they were in where laws did not necessarily apply in a world where the government dropped bombs on entire metropolitan cities? It was all new, but she shook the man's hand anyway. Daryl had seemed to manage fine without the help of his brother regarding the deer, and he dropped it at Merle's feet. This time she spoke, realizing she hadn't formally introduced herself to Merle.

"I'm Mia and... there's a camp but I'm not in charge so I can't really make the call."

She knew right away she had said too much, but she wasn't all that good a liar. That's something she would probably have to work on if things were going to keep going the way they were. The brothers exchanged looks, and it was clear to Mia who ran the show. Merle's voice broke the brief silence again, like audible sandpaper.

"Well the way I see it, we have ourselves a fine animal right here. I think me and my brother can more than convince whoever you got in charge of your little gang to have us stay at least a couple nights if we come with an offering, don't you think?"

"I don't know, I mean... maybe? It's worth a shot I guess."

The brothers looked at each other again. Their dynamic was eerily unsettling, maybe because they reminded her of how she was with her sister. She'd been the quiet one and Vera the ringleader, quite like the two men who stood before her now. Without saying a word, Daryl shrugged and hoisted the front of the deer back onto his shoulder, ready to go in whatever direction Mia led them. Neither of the men gave any inclination that she had a choice in the matter, so she led them back. She thought about leading them in another direction, but she didn't know these woods well enough and she could have been leading them anywhere. The other thought that crossed her mind was how Shane would react to all of this. Their group was just starting up, but the people at the camp seemed... friendlier than these two.

The clearing up ahead was in sight now, and she quickened her pace as she saw it. She wanted to be around someone familiar; Lori, Carl, Shane, Carol. Even trying to keep up in a conversation with an excited Glenn would probably make her feel more comfortable than the two strange men and one dead deer following her. Then she saw Shane's face and she changed her mind.

"Girl, where the hell you been?! I was near ready to send people out looking for you! You had Lori a damn mess and I-"

Up until he cut himself off, he had stormed over to her and had his hand on her wrist. It didn't hurt her, but his reaction startled her a little bit. She wasn't anticipating his anger, but what she saw now in his eyes was fear and concern as he looked passed her and directly at the two men. The hand he had around her wrist gently pulled her behind him, away from Merle and Daryl.

"You lost?"

Shane's voice was strong, assertive. He didn't let go of her wrist as he addressed Merle and Daryl, and Mia looked passed him wondering how this would play out. Behind her and Shane, other people in the group began to look on and some even stepped closer hesistantly.

"Hey now, it's alright! We come bearing gifts. Shot us a deer here and we thought we could share with the group. Daryl'll skin it and everything, no worries. Name's Merle, this my brother, Daryl."

Shane loosened his grip on her wrist, but she could still sense the tension coming from his body. His eyes went from Merle's cheshire grin to the deer Daryl was carrying, and then surprisingly they went to Mia before he responded to Merle's proposal.

"Just give me a second, alright?"

"Sure, sure. Whatever you need, man. You're the boss." Merle sounded compliant, but that didn't surprise anyone considering he was the one asking for a favor.

Shane turned to Mia and looked her over quickly with a sense of unease. The anger had somewhat left his face, leaving what seemed to be worry. His voice hushed so that only Mia could hear him and she knew it was deliberate.

"Did they do anything to you? You're alright?"

Mia responded with a shake of her head, picking up on the fact he wanted the conversation quiet.

"No. I mean, no they didn't do anything. Yes, I'm alright."

Shane's face softened slightly at her answer and she almost thought she saw a hint of a smile. He looked back at the two unfamilar men. Daryl had set the deer down and was rubbing at his shoulder while Merle was leaning on a tree waiting for Shane's response.

"So I should let you come set up camp with us for a deer? That's what you gettin' at?"

This time to Mia's surprise, and Shane's too it seemed by the looks of it, Daryl spoke up and not Merle.

"Man, what you think we're serial killers or somethin'? You want the damn deer or not? I aint got all fuckin' day. I'm tired of luggin' this shit around!"

Merle silenced his brother with an extended hand and Daryl cooled down.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa. Easy, little brother. It's his call. Though really, if anyone is suspicious to me it's him, not us. We at least told him our names, way I see it. Common courtesy, is all."

Mia couldn't tell if Shane's choice to not tell the brothers his name was an oversight or on purpose, and it was harder to tell given the stern poker face he was giving them. He cleared his throat but it didn't throw his unwaivering confidence and control of the situation.

"Shane Walsh. Officer Shane Walsh."

He used his authoritative title with reason, that she could tell right away. Mia began to notice that now the whole camp was listening in or at least had their attention drawn towards what was going on with them. Merle gave a chuckle and Daryl shook his head, looking away. Shane didn't seem as amused as either of them.

"You think that's funny? What's funny to me is a couple of rednecks comin' into my camp asking favors of me and then laughing in my face expectin' me to comply. So tell me somethin', cause I'm dying to know, what do you think would make me want to let you into a camp with women and children in here when I don't know one goddamn thing about y'all?"

The laughing stopped. Merle sucked his teeth and Daryl, along with everyone else, waited for what Merle would say. It was clear that Merle wasn't expecting lip from Shane and Mia had the feeling not many people gave lip to Merle in general. She looked over at Shane's face and his eyes didn't blink as he stared ahead. There was no softness in his face now, not like when he spoke to her. He was stoic, serious, and unamused.

"Fair enough, Sheriff. You don't know anything about us, so how 'bout a trial basis then, huh? We've been on the road for quite a bit, we could both use a couple days to recharge. Then after a couple days if you still we're dangerous or whatever your cop instinct you're goin' on says, we'll head out. Just lettin' you know though, I got military training and my brother here's the best hunter you'll find. Can't find better than my baby brother. We could turn out to be the best things you ever let stumble into your group."

Shane studied Merle, no doubt contemplating his sincerity on the matter. When he was done looking at him, he looked back to the rest of the group. The older man she'd seen earlier with the bucket hat had stepped closer to see what was going on and shrugged when Shane had looked at him for approval.

"I don't see how it could hurt, but it's your call, son."

Shane glanced at the mixed faces of his group that he was now the leader of. They all looked to him now, not just Lori, Carl, and herself. The silence was broken by Carl, who Mia hadn't noticed was now standing next to her.

"Shane, I'm hungry."

It was almost instantly after he said that, that Shane seemed to have made up his mind. He turned back to Daryl and Merle and gave the answer everyone was waiting on.

"Two days. You gut and skin the deer, you don't ask any of us for help. This was your offer, we didn't ask. You set up your own camp and you get your own stuff here. Leave the deer here while you go. After two days, we'll talk."

Merle seemed to be content with this answer and he clapped his hands, the smile re-emerging on his face.

"I knew you'd come around. Let's go Daryl, you heard the man."

Daryl seemed apprehensive about leaving the deer he'd just caught in the hands of a stranger, but he followed his older brother anyway as Merle left the way he'd came.

Shane let out a relieved sigh, though Mia was not convinced he was 100% relieved that he just let two strangers into his group of seemingly good people and their families. He rubbed his head and left her where she stood as he walked through the rest of the group, not answering anyone's questions or interjections.

He didn't know it, but she trusted his instincts even if other people didn't. He handled the situation well, better than she ever could; better than she had anticipated. A wave of guilt came over her as she realized none of this would even be an issue if she hadn't left. Not only did she lead a couple of strangers back to camp, causing discomfort among the group, but also causing Shane to second guess his instincts and make a risky decision. Not only that, but he'd also said Lori had been worrying. She felt awful and even worse when Lori came over and gave her a hug.

"I thought something happened to you! I'm so glad you're okay. Next time tell someone at least, okay? Or better yet, take someone with you. I'll go with you next time."

Lori pulled back from the one sided embrace and looked her over, smiling.

"That shirt looks better on you than it does on me. You look nice in yellow!"

Mia couldn't help but smile, and it wasn't forced or put on, but a real genuine smile.

"So I've heard."


End file.
